Northern Youth Leaders Defy El-Rufai, Meet Again

In defiance to the order given by the Kaduna State Governor, Nasir el-Rufai, members of the groups that issued the ultimatum to people of Igbo extraction, on Wednesday, held another meeting.

The National President of the Arewa Youth Consultative Forum, Yerima Shettima, said members of the groups were meeting when contacted at 7.32pm. When asked to comment on the order by el-Rufai that the youth should be arrested, Shettima said, “Please, we are meeting now on the matter. When we finish, we shall let you know the outcome of our meeting. I will get back to you once we end our meeting please.”

El-Rufai, had earlier on Wednesday, through his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Mr. Samuel Aruwan, at a press conference in the state capital, ordered the police to immediately fish out those behind the threat statement as well as their sponsors for immediate prosecution.

He stated that the representatives of the groups had violated the law of the state by issuing such threats within the state, saying they would not be spared. The groups had, on Tuesday, issued a three-month ultimatum to people of Igbo extraction, resident in the 19 states in the North, to leave the North or be forced out before October 1, 2017.